Английская Википедия:Dorothy Olsen

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Шаблон:Short description Шаблон:Good article Шаблон:Use mdy dates Шаблон:Infobox aviator Dorothy Eleanor Olsen (Шаблон:Née; July 10, 1916 – July 23, 2019) was an American aircraft pilot and member of the Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASPs) in World War II. She grew up on her family's farm in Oregon, developing an interest in aviation at a young age. She earned her private pilot's license in 1939, when it was unusual for women to be pilots.

When the war began, she joined the WASPs, where she was a civilian employee of the military. After training in Texas, she was assigned to the Sixth Ferrying Group in Long Beach, California where she worked ferrying new aircraft to airbases from the factories where they were built. She flew more than 20 types of military airplanes, including high performance fighters such as the P-51 and the twin-engine P-38, which she favored over larger aircraft such as bombers. She was particularly fond of the P-51.

After the war, Olsen retired from flying and moved to Washington, where she raised a family and lived for the rest of her life. In 2009, she was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal honoring her service during the war. Olsen died in 2019, at the age of 103.

Early life

Dorothy Eleanor Olsen was born in Woodburn, near Portland, Oregon, on July 10, 1916, to Ralph and Frances (Zimmering) Kocher, and grew up on the family's small farm. She decided she wanted to fly airplanes when she was eight, after reading The Red Knight of Germany, Floyd Gibbons's biography of World War I flying ace Manfred von Richthofen. Her introduction to flight was when she took a biplane ride at a state fair, which inspired her to take flying lessons; the cost of the flight reportedly used her entire savings. In 2011, she told the Chinook Observer:

Olsen earned her private pilot's license as a civilian in 1939,Шаблон:Rp taking her checkride in a Шаблон:Convert Taylorcraft. Reportedly one of only three women in the Portland area to have a private pilot's license, Olsen flew with the Woodburn Flying Club (where she was the only woman among 19 men), and with the Civil Air Patrol in Portland and The Dales. She also worked as a dance instructor in Portland.

WASPs

Olsen, using a cane for support, standing in front of a P-51 Mustang on static display. The airplane is painted in [[Invasion stripes]].

Olsen in front of a P-51 at a 2016 airshow.

Olsen joined the Woman Airforce Service PIlots (WASPs) in 1943 when the program was created; this was an organization of women pilots who took non-combat flying jobs as civilian employees of the military. A petite woman, Шаблон:Convert tall, Olsen embarked on a weight-gaining regimen based on bananas and malted milk to make the Шаблон:Convert required minimum. There were more than 25,000 applicants to the program, of which 1,879 were accepted and 1,074 graduated; Olsen was one of 152 students in class 43-4. Her training began in February 1943, at Houston Municipal Field (renamed William P. Hobby Airport in 1967) where half of her class was stationed. The other half of the class reported to Avenger Field in Sweetwater, Texas.Шаблон:Rp Initial training was in the Fairchild PT-19, progressing to the Vultee BT-13, the North American AT-6, and finally to the twin-engine Beechcraft AT-11.Шаблон:Rp

Olsen initially hated her training, but stayed with the program to avoid the embarrassment of dropping out; in a 2010 interview, she recollected crowded housing, insects, and poor weather which made the conditions "pretty primitive".Шаблон:Rp She encountered difficulties when her fiancé died; taking time off to attend his funeral put her behind the rest of her class. Despite being sick with a cold on her return, she passed a checkride which included aerobatic maneuvers, allowing her to stay with her class although she struggled to catch up. She graduated on August 7, 1943Шаблон:Rp and was assigned to the Sixth Ferrying Group in Long Beach, California. She later said:

Olsen credited WASP head Jackie Cochran with providing an opportunity to keep women pilots flying during World War II. Olsen flew 61 missions for the U.S. Army Air Corps, delivering brand new planes from the factory. She was one of only 12 women certified for night flight. A typical assignment was to ferry a P-38 or P-51 from Long Beach to Newark, New Jersey, then get a military transport flight to Niagra Falls, New York, where she would pick up a Bell P-63 for delivery to Great Falls, Montana and then return to Long Beach for another trip.Шаблон:Rp These were all single-seat fighters, with the P-38 being twin-engine, the P-51 and P-63 single-engine.

Olsen took a pair of good shoes with her on ferry flights so she could go on dancing dates with men at her destination before having to take off on her next flight. She often left her name and address in the cockpits of planes she had ferried, to be found later by the combat pilots, a practice shared by other WASPs. Two such combat pilots sent replies. One, a lieutenant, wrote "I thought I’d write a few lines to let you know that despite the fact that a woman once flew it, the ship performs perfectly and is apparently without flaws of any kind". WASPs were not considered military personnel; Olsen is listed in the Sixth Ferrying Group personnel book with the title of "Civilian Pilot". When the WASP program ended in 1944, the pilots were discharged at their home bases, with no transportation allowance to get back home. WASPs were retroactively granted veteran status as part of the GI Bill Improvement Act of 1977.

According to Olsen, she flew more than 20 different models of military aircraft, both Army and Navy types. Her favorite was the P-51. Debbie Jennings, a historian with the Seattle Museum of Flight, said Olsen disliked flying bombers because in the single-seat fighters, "she was by herself and could do whatever she wanted". Jennings mentioned that Olsen enjoyed scaring farmers on their tractors by flying close to them and "would do the same at railroad stations just because". For these actions, she was reprimanded by her superiors. According to her son, "She felt bombers were like driving buses". Her daughter noted that Olsen felt the P-38 was "an old woman's plane", which "anybody could fly", but a pilot had to "stay on top of" the P-51.

After the war

Olsen as an elderly woman speaking with a younger woman dressed in a flight suit, in front of a P-51 on display.

Dorothy Olsen meets with F-22 pilot Capt. Jammie Jamieson at McChord AFB in 2008 (U.S. Air Force photo).

Olsen never flew commercially after the war, and not at all after having children. She is quoted as saying, "Why would I want to fly a Cessna when I've flown a P-51?" After the war, she married Harold W. Olsen, and moved to University Place, Washington. The couple had a daughter, Julie (Stranburg), and a son, Kim. Olsen ran antique shops after raising their children. Nerve damage from a dental procedure left her deaf for many years but at the age of 80, she received cochlear implants which restored her hearing.

In 2009, Olsen (along with her fellow WASPs) was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal to commemorate her service. In 2015, she was honored with a flyover of Seattle's Boeing Field by vintage aircraft for her 99th birthday. In 2016, Olsen celebrated her 100th birthday at Joint Base Lewis–McChord. Also in attendance were fellow WASPs Alta Thomas, Betty Dybbro, and Mary Jean Sturdevant.

Olsen died on July 23, 2019, at her home in University Place, Washington, aged 103 and was given military honors at her funeral. She was one of the last 38 WASPs still alive.

External links

• Шаблон:Commons category-inline
• National WASP WWII Museum website